AAS Committee on the Status of Women
February 16, 2018
eds: Nicolle Zellner, Heather Flewelling, Christina Thomas, and Maria Patterson
This week's issues:
1. Talking About the Tesla
2. NASA's First Chief Astronomer, the Mother of Hubble
3. Who’s Important? A tale from Wikipedia
4. OSA Foundation and The Optical Society celebrates women in our field by sharing special tributes from Members
5. I want girls to learn math and science — and their own self-worth — despite stereotypes
6. Job Opportunities
7. How to Submit to the AASWomen Newsletter
8. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWomen Newsletter
9. Access to Past Issues of the AASWomen Newsletter
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1. Talking About the Tesla
From: Emily Lakdawalla via womeninastronomy.blogspot.com
When I first heard about Elon Musk’s plan to launch his own cherry-red Tesla roadster as a dummy mass aloft the inaugural launch of the Falcon Heavy, I was nonplussed. Something had to be in that rocket, and there’s no question that the car would be more fun than a block of concrete. But it struck me as a vulgar display of conspicuous consumption, like lighting a cigar with a flaming hundred-dollar bill. NASA - and all the other government-run space agencies - put so much thought and care into the symbols that launch on their spacecraft: the Pioneer plaque, the Voyager golden record, the Martian library on the Phoenix lander. This, by contrast, appeared as one man’s display of wealth and power: I’m rich enough to throw away this car on the rocket I built.
Read more at
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2. NASA's First Chief Astronomer, the Mother of Hubble
From: Vanessa Thomas [vanessa.j.thomas_at_nasa.gov]
The NASA Goddard Hubble Space Telescope team has published a video about NASA’s first Chief of Astronomy, Nancy Grace Roman, to mark the UN’s International Day of Women and Girls in Science.
See the video at
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3. Who’s Important? A tale from Wikipedia
From: Megan Reiter [mreiter_at_umich.edu]
“…do we as a society … believe that greatness is contagious? Can it be passed from one person to another, like a venereal disease? This was a question I began to ask myself as I thought about Paul Erdős…What evidence was being used to establish importance to begin with, I wondered. I began to look more closely at the page histories of the Wikipedia pages themselves.”
Read more at
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4. OSA Foundation and The Optical Society celebrates women in our field by sharing special tributes from Members
From: John Mather [johncm12_at_gmail.com]
In recognition of the International Day of Women and Girls in Science (February 11), the Optical Society of America has highlighted outstanding contributions from women in the field. “The goal of the program is to honor and highlight aspiring and established women.”
Read their stories at
Watch videos at
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5. I want girls to learn math and science — and their own self-worth — despite stereotypes
From: Nicolle Zellner [nzellner_at_albion.edu]
In an opinion piece, Danica McKellar, an actor, book author, and advocate for math education, writes that women and girls should not “succumb to artificial boundaries”. She writes that when women and girls (especially girls) get over their fears and build confidence, they have “gained something that no one can take away…”
Read more at
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6. Job Opportunities
For those interested in increasing excellence and diversity in their organizations, a list of resources and advice is here: https://cswa.aas.org/#howtoincrease
- Lecturer in Astronomy, 1 year, Smith College, Massachusetts
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7. How to Submit to the AASWOMEN newsletter
To submit an item to the AASWOMEN newsletter, including replies to topics, send email to aaswomen_at_aas.org
All material will be posted unless you tell us otherwise, including your email address.
When submitting a job posting for inclusion in the newsletter, please include a one-line description and a link to the full job posting.
Please remember to replace "_at_" in the e-mail address above.
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8. How to Subscribe or Unsubscribe to the AASWOMEN newsletter
Join AAS Women List by email:
Send email to aaswlist+subscribe_at_aas.org from the address you want to have subscribed. You can leave the subject and message blank if you like.
Be sure to follow the instructions in the confirmation email. (Just reply back to the email list)
To unsubscribe by email:
Send email to aaswlist+unsubscribe_at_aas.org from the address you want to have UNsubscribed. You can leave the subject and message blank if you like.
To join or leave AASWomen via web, or change your membership settings:
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Google Groups Subscribe Help:
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9. Access to Past Issues
Each annual summary includes an index of topics covered.
